The Devouring Mask
by Avelera
Summary: A series of short stories about the Vizards. Chapter 1, Hiyori's thoughts on the night of her Hollowfication. Chapter 2, Shinji gets a haircut. Shinji/Hiyori
1. The Devouring Mask

**The Devouring Mask**

**Disclaimer**: All Bleach characters belong to Tite Kubo.

**Author Note**: This was written last summer, back when the manga chapter came out. I left it on livejournal for awhile, but thought I might post it here in honor of the anime episode's release. I apologize for any mistaken Japanese terminology and I welcome corrections. Please enjoy.

**Summary**: Hiyori's thoughts on the night of her Hollowification. Shinji/Hiyori

* * *

The tsunami of adrenaline mixed with fear crashed through Hiyori's body, pooling like acid in her stomach and turning her limbs to lead. She hung limply from Shinji's arm, able to only stare in horror as her fellow shinigami battled with a hollow, a hollow that had once been Kensei. She screamed as the first blade sliced across his arm but it was drowned in the roar of the battle.

She flinched as Love was thrown past them, his limp form bouncing and rolling like a toy thrown by a petulant child. Now only Rose and Lisa stood against Kensei, flanking him to either side, their zankpaktuo's reflecting slices of moonlight into the darkness.

"Stop! Don't you get it? It's Kensei! You can't-," she screamed but another bone-wracking cough shook her body to the core. Vomit choked her throat and she struggled to keep it down, retching with nausea and chills. A cold sweat had broken across her forehead and trickled down her back.

"Quiet Hiyori," said Shinji, his voice gentle but firm, "We have to stop him. Especially if it's really Kensei." Hiyori could only stare at him. Lisa and Rose flew forward only to be thrown backwards as well. Hiyori bit back another scream as Rose was crushed to the ground by a black and green blur that tumbled out of the sky, scissor kicking him to the ground. She needn't have bothered, the world exploded into chaos as the shape flew towards the spot where Shinji stood holding her under one arm. _Mashiro_, she realized feeling the sick feeling in her stomach well up once more. Another wave of dizziness struck her and darkness crashed across her vision like a black wave. Something twisted inside of her and she fell into another coughing fit, even as Shinji dodged Mashiro's attack, jerking Hiyori against his chest to shield her. Her eyes stung with tears in the wake of the coughing fit and the last of her strength fled her body. She could barely lift her head as an explosion sent a shockwave across the ground. Bars and ropes of pure light now bound Kensei and Mashiro and an enormous shape that she could only assume was Hachi loomed to her left but the world was spinning out focus and black stars exploded across her vision. The vomit at the back of her throat felt almost solid with its need to escape and a low wicked laugh sent chills down her spine.

…Laughter?

"_What do we have here?_"

Hiyori opened her eyes and squinted up into a blue sky stripped with jagged white clouds. There was something odd about those clouds but her head throbbed like the morning after a hard night's drinking and forcing her thoughts through the haze was like trying to punch through a stone wall.

"_Does the littlest Shinigami want to play_?" A hollow voice rang out, the sound distant and tinny and somehow echoing as if the speaker was underwater.

Red exploded across Hiyori's vision as a lance of pain pierced her in the gut and she twisted in agony.

"_Hey, you listenin'?"_ Hiyori's eyes focused on the black spot hovering in front of her vision. It resolved itself into a black silhouette against the blue sky. The form was slight with two bone-white pigtails and a white haori trimmed with black. It stood above her, one leg poised to deliver another kick to her stomach. Its black lips were twisted in a bloodthirsty grin and one fang glinted over the edge of its lips.

She recognized that face. She had seen it every day for the few moments she glanced into the mirror to put her pigtails up. It stuck a blue tongue out at her almost mischievously then faster than she could blink it had seized her by the neck with one death-white and yanked her upwards into the air.

"Who the fuck are you?" Hiyori gasped, struggling to breathe around the clenched fingers.

"Kind of a deep question, ain't it?" the other Hiyori said, "Guess you could say I'm your future." An image flashed behind the white-clad figure, a monster with a hole in the center of its chest and a long horn protruding from its forehead.

A Hollow.

It opened its mouth as the white girl in front of Hiyori did and the haunting scream of the Hollow rang through the air. The Hollow pulled her counterpart forward and her hot breath whuffed across her face. It dove foreword. Hiyori twisted in its grasp, kicking out with both legs and throwing herself backwards out of the grip just as the teeth clamped down where her throat had been.

She slid backwards across the ground, for the first time noticing her surroundings. A city, taller than Soul Society, with buildings that defied gravity as they stretched upward into the sky. She had been to this place before, glimpsed it in her dreams when she first began to speak to her zankupaktuou. But there was no time to wonder where her swords spirit was in all this emptiness. She barely had time to breathe as the Hollow shot after her in pursuit. Her hands shot instinctively to her hip and finding her zankupaktuo there she ripped it from its sheathe, pulling it up to block just as the white Hiyori crashed down in front of her like a meteor, its black sword ringing like a bell as it struck hers.

_How the hell does it have a zankupaktuou?!_ her mind screamed as she dodged then throwing her sword up above her head just in time to block a blow from above. Her knees nearly gave out under the weight of the blow. Her left hand flew from the hilt to the back of the blade and with a twist of her body she threw her strength into throwing the creature off of her. But at the last moment the resistance gave way and she stumbled forward, overextending her reach. The creature sprung, slamming its foot down on Hiyori's back, driving her face-first to the ground. Hiyori twisted her neck, her eyes wide as she stared up at the looming figure, staring into her own white face contorted with malice. The shadow of the Hollow still hovered over the other Hiyori's back like smoke, its boney grin wide and mocking.

"_Don't worry, this won't hurt for long_," said the other Hiyori. _"At least, it won't hurt _you_ for long. Once I have control of your body, well, that will be a different matter entirely…" _

Hiyori spasmed as fear sucker punched her in the gut, "Shinji!" she gasped. Her vision flickered and for a moment she was staring at a blood-soaked battlefield lit by moonlight. She was pressed against a warm body clothed in white, one strong arm wrapped around her body, "…Shin…" she whispered, feeling the tears trickle down her face. Dizziness contorted her vision and coughing spasms tore through her chest. The sick feeling at the back of her throat was rippling as if it was alive, pushing its way forward. "Shin…ji…," she choaked out. His body shifted as he looked down at her, "Let…"

The city flashed across her vision and for a moment she felt the weight of the Hollow's foot pressed into her back. The sound of distant laughter…

"Let… GO!"

The vomit poured from the back of her throat as the last of her strength went into that desperate scream. Liquid bone rushed from her mouth and covered her face, pulsing in time with her heartbeat that raced with anguish. The last thing she saw before the bone mask covered her face was the flash over her blade and the spray of blood as it tore across Shinji's chest.

Something in her heart broke in that moment and she wasn't sure if the wail that echoed in the air was the newly born Hollow or herself.

* * *

Hiyori's eyes snapped open and her sword came up in time for another block. The Hollow crashed forward, screeching laughter as it pounded Hiyori's defenses to break them open.

"Bring it on, bitch!" Hiyori howled back in its face.

The sound of clashing steel rang through the air as the two collided and what felt like hours but may have only been a few minutes passed in a flurry of clanging blades, Hiyori's cursing, and the Hollow's laughter.

It was exactly like fighting against a mirror. The other Hiyori with her white skin and black nails seemed to know every trick that the real Hiyori could pull. Even her speed, always her strongest suite whether it meant dodging or even running away, was beginning to lag in comparison with her tireless opponent. She realized this when it scored the first blood, a slice down Hiyori's sleeve scratched at her arm like a long deep papercut. It burned just as much too.

"Getting sloppy, little shinigami?" it cackled, "Does little shinigami need a rest?"

Hiyori spared the cut barely a glance and looking back to her opponent saw her opening. The Hollow was standing only a few feet from her, its smile wide and mocking, one fist on its hip with its zankupato rested lazily against one shoulder. Hiyori fought down a snicker. Her sword darting like a snake's tongue, she had the pleasure of watching the Hollow's eyes widen in surprise and bring its sword up to block just as she delivered a flying kick to the creature's stomach. She heard the _whuff_ as the air was driven from her lungs and for a moment she was on top, one fang gleaming as she stared down at her opponent, her breath escaping from her lungs in triumphant gasps.

Then the world when dark.

* * *

She was standing upright in the cool night air, her shoulders hunched. Something was obstructing her vision, something white, like a mask…

"Aizen, what's going on? What the hell do you want…?"

A gurgling howl filled the air, drowning out whatever Aizen said in response. There was something wrong, Hiyori could feel it but her body felt so heavy and her brain too fogged. Her body was telling her to lie down and let the weight of her exhaustion drag her down to sleep. She was so exhausted from the battle and she wasn't even sure if it was over, why she was back in Soul Society and not in that strange upsidedown city.

Her weary gaze followed the sound of the scream until they came to rest on Shinji. His white haori was stained with blood that disappeared into his black haori. She had never seen him look so defeated or so angry. The cocky, ridiculous captain that she had come to know and…

His face was covered in the same bone-white material that she had seen just before blacking out. Only from this angle she could see what it was.

A Hollow mask.

Even as she watched it crept along his features, devouring them and replacing them. Despite that his eyes continued to burn as he glared forward at Aizen. Suddenly he doubled forward as another gurgling cry was torn from his throat and the white mask spread further as if to strangle him.

Alarm fluttered in her breast like a trapped bird and she turned her head, willing her body to follow. His eyes were white and wild as he struggled with the devouring mask and she felt as if her heart was being torn from her chest.

How could this happen?

"Shi…Shin…ji?" she rasped

He looked up towards her and his entire body jerked forward, one arm flying forward, "Stop-!" he shouted.

Pain turned her world to red and the last thing she felt the warm sticky bloody pouring from her wound as she tumbled bonelessly to the ground.

The last thing she saw was Shinji's form as the strength left his body and his shoulders fell in utter defeat and helplessness.

All she could think as her body went numb and the pain seared across her back like a red-hot wire was that of all that she had seen that day, the look on Shinji's face had been the worst.

* * *

A/N: If you are at all interested in the continued adventures of the Vizards on Earth, or if you just liked the story, please leave a review. As stated at the beginning, I welcome any corrections you may have, especially for the Japanese terminology.


	2. The Samson Complex

**The Samson Complex**

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to Tite Kubo. I am making no money from this piece.

Author Note: This has been sitting half-complete on my hardrive for over a year and I took NaNoWriMo as an opportunity to finish it and some other fanfics. I decided to post it here because I promised I'd add more episodes about the Vizards. The title is based on the well-known Biblical story "Samson and Delilah", as well as Regina Spektor's song "Samson", which I listened to while writing much of this. I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

"Ne, ne Kensei! Do you think its safe to go out now?" Mashiro said.

Lisa looked up from her newspaper and turned her expressionless gaze on the green-haired girl. She said nothing, but a slight frown narrowed her lips. Hachi seemed not to notice Mashiro's outburst as he leaned against the wall, his legs folded and his eyes closed in meditation, but his shoulders shifted and closed in as if to shield his rotund body.

A vein throbbed in Kensei's forhead and the skin around his eyes tightened. The whole picture of impending wrath might have been a bit more threatening had he not been wearing a frilly pink apron over his western-style shirt and trousers. Standing at a stove preparing rice like an overworked housewife certainly did not help the image either. "No," he said curtly, without looking up from the stove. The rice whipped a little more violently against the side of the pot.

"But I'm bored, and I'm sick of your cooking! I want to go and eat dumplings and ohagi, and teppanyaki!" Mashiro's arms flapped inside of her overlong sleeves. While Lisa had taken to wearing the long skirts affected by Karakura schoolgirls, Mashiro had defied any attempt at blending in. She was currently wearing one of Kensei's shirts, belted at the waist to form a barely decent sort of dress. The long cuffs dangled past her slim hands and the buttons she had left undone at the neck left little to the imagination. "I don't want to be cooped up in here anymore! It's just a stinky, smelly warehouse and I'm tired of looking at your ugly face every day!"

The vein was throbbing an ugly red in Kensei's temple and the rice was now whipping about so quickly that a few grains flew out of the pot and stuck to Kensei's face. His teeth were set in death's head grin.

Still getting no reaction, Mashiro took a deep breath, "KEN--!"

"No, you can't go out so just shut the hell up about it already and go kill yourself or something. If I hear your damn voice one more time—!" rice forgotten, Kensei loomed in front of Mashiro, chopsticks held as if he planned to stab her eyes out. The green-haired girl didn't even blink, her face still crinkled with an oncoming tantrum. The screaming match escalated until any words that might have been exchanged between the two of them were drowned out in the combined force of Mashiro's high-pitched whining and Kensei's screamed obscenities.

"Why are ya making all this racket?" came Shinji's voice.

The blond appeared from the trapdoor that lead to the training room, Hiyori's not far behind him like a sulking shadow. His hair was the same sheet of blond that ran all the way down his back but that was perhaps the only thing about him that was reminiscent of the former Shinigami captain. His "zoot" suit as he called it, apparently all the rage in some place called Harlem was a dusky tan and looked at least a size too big, bulking out his rather scrawny figure in much the same way that his captain's coat once had. Behind him Hiyori was wearing what resembled a yukata, tied loosely so as to not restrict her movement. Even with with a fair amount of leg showing she stilled little older than twelve. Her characteristic scowl was there but it was weaker than usual, sweat glistening on her brow and and her breath came in short gasps as if she had just run a marathon.

"What are you doing up here? Dinner ain't ready yet. I thought you and Hiyori would be training for another hour," said Kensei, temporarily ignoring Mashiro who had begun to roll back and forth across the floor.

"Tch, we were till we heard the screaming," Shinji sniffed the air, "Is something burning?"

Kensei cursed and darted back to the stove, flipping off the heat and blowing futilely at what was likely to be another foul-tasting meal.

By now Mashiro had righted herself though the petulant look had not left her heart-shaped face. "Shinjiii, Kensei won't let me go out!"

"Huh, why are you telling me this?" said Shinji.

"Because its been a year," said Lisa in her low, quiet voice. The room went silent.

Shinji's blank expression seemed to close even further, until his face was expressionless as a mask of bone.

"Unlike the rest of you, I have been outside," said Lisa, "I've barely escaped Soul Society agents on numerous occasions. Second squad, sixth squad, fifth," Shinji's eyes narrowed, "and even the eighth. But now they've stopped. Tell them, Hachi," said Lisa, turning to the pink-haired Kido master.

Hachi sighed, clearly unhappy that he was being drawn in at all, "It's true," he rumbled, "once the sweeps passed over us several times a day but it has been a week since I have felt any spiritual pressure at all."

Lisa nodded, "Shinji, I'm telling you this because you're our leader," Shinji tsked and looked away but Lisa continued, "We've followed you now for the last year and its kept us alive. But the search is over, Soul Society doesn't care about us anymore."

"Yeah right!" said Hiyori, "They're probably just waiting for us to come out of hiding so they can kill us!" the tiny blonde's scowl was back full force and she swept a brown-eyed glare across the room as if daring the company to contradict her.

"Its only a matter of time before the evidence catches up to Aizen," said Shinji, "Soul Society is probably holding his trial right now."

"I don't think so," came the voice of Rose.

"Is dinner ready?" said Love as he too emerged from the training room. He mutely accepted a plate from Kensei and began to eat the goopy mess without complaint. Kensei doled out plates to the others but they all remained silent while they waited for Rose to continue.

"Hunting us was the actions of a weakened Soul Society," said Rose, "The evidence was shaky, they needed to feel as if they were doing something. Now that they've stopped, it means they have reached a position of strength and left their period of uncertainty. They have concluded that we are traitors and, likely as not, they've already replaced us."

"That's bullshit," growled Hiyori, "Urahara will—"

"Urahara is in more danger than us, and his credibility has been destroyed," said Love. "Him and Tessai both. Soul Society will never listen to either of them, not until Aizen proves his guilt clearly enough for even blind old Yamamato to see."

"So what are we supposed to do?" said Hiyori, "Crouch here like rats for a century or two until Aizen messes up? Knowing him that might never happened," her mouth twisted as if she had bitten into something sour.

"Mashiro has the right idea," said Lisa.

"Wha-? I did?" said Mashiro.

"We have to accept that Soul Society is never going to allow us back," Lisa continued, "We're going to have to accept that and move on. Forget we were ever Shinigami in the first place."

"I never said that!" exclaimed Mashiro just as the group of former Shinigami exploded into a cacophony of dissent.

"We might be cleared any day!"

"If we give up, Aizen has won!"

"How the fuck are we supposed to blend in? In case you haven't noticed, Mashiro's hair is green and Hachi is the size of a hut, no offense."

"None taken. Lisa, really, I must protest…"

Lisa waited for the shouting to die down but to her surprise it was Shinji who spoke first, raising his voice only so high that it drove everyone to silence.

"Lisa is right. We gotta stop bumming around here like Soul Society is going to come in and fix everything for us. We're not Shinigami anymore, we're something else, something that Soul Society decided has to die. Maybe we'll get our chance to make things right someday. But for now, well, I don't know about you but if I have to eat Kensei's cooking one more time I may just hand myself over to Yamamato gift-wrapped," said Shinji. "It's time for us to rejoin the human world."

"Shinji…" whispered Hiyori, then rallied herself, "What if it's a trap?"

"We'll handle it," said Shinji dismissively.

"And if they find us?" said Hachi.

"Then we'll fight our way out. Tch, look at us. We're the strongest bunch of captains and lieutenants to ever come out of Sereitei," Shinji grinned, "Its going to take more than a couple of shinigami to capture us."

"But we are still fugitives," said Rose, "A little discretion may be in order. Like Kensei said, we aren't the most normal looking group of people. And if Soul Society circulated out descriptions we'll probably need disguises of some sort."

"You're going to chop off that pretty hair of yours, Rose?" jeered Shinji.

Rose looked taken aback, "Well, I wouldn't go that far. Dressing like the locals should be enough…"

"You just don't want to lose that nice mane o' yours. Face it, you'll stand out like Boss Yama in the Rukongi looking like that," said Shinji.

"Your hair is much more noticeable than mine and I don't see you volunteering to cut it," Rose shot back.

"He's got you there, baldy!" laughed Hiyori.

Annoyance flashed across Shinji's face, "Fine, where are the scissors?" Hiyori's laughter stopped and she looked up, stunned.

"You're really going to cut your hair?" said Hiyori, as if he had said he was planning a vacation to Hueco Mondo. The others looked surprised as well but Lisa stood and wandered over to the makeshift kitchen, pulling a pair of scissors from the drawer.

"What? He's right, it wouldn't be hard to spot him in a crowd the way he is now," said Lisa, profferings the scissors towards Shinji. "Besides, I want to see if he has the balls."

"It's just hair," said Shinji dismissively, and went to sit on of the crates that lined the warehouse. "Lisa, light of my life, will you do the honors?" Shinji leered. Lisa rolled her eyes but walked over to stand behind him.

* * *

Hiyori watched him take the seat and fluff out his stupid girly hair (all sleak and shiny and soft). Shinji was looking straight ahead, his gaze calm and aimless as if he hadn't a care in the world. After all, no captain would ever make a fuss about needing their hair cut, especially not if it meant the difference between life and death.

Then again, any other captain wasn't Hirako Shinji.

Even back on the streets of Rukongai where they had grown up together, Shinji had been vain about it. It was the only thing he wasn't self conscious about. He had taken his self-consciousness with him when he became a captain, affecting bulky robes to hide his slim but well muscled body. There was nothing he could do about his teeth or upside-down, toothy grin and so he had turned that weakness into a strength, using that leering smile that cut his face in half to unsettle his enemies and friends.

His hair though, his (stupid, girly, doesn't-deserve-to-be-on-a-boy) hair was his secret pride. It wasn't the first sacrifice he had made for their new life earth, no way in hell it would be the last. But it was the most visible. Even Lisa hesitated as she pulled it back. It was like cutting their rope back to Soul Society. Soon they would all be different, true Hollow hybrids and no longer Shinigami of the Court of Pure Souls.

Hiyori's eyes itched and she scrubbed at them furiously, blotting out the image of Lisa (beautiful shiny black hair, tall lithe figure, mature, the lady who had caught the eye of lecherous Captain Kyoraku and held it for over half a century) as she asked, "How short?"

And Shinji turned his head back to whisper like a lover, or a boy with his first crush (Hiyori scrubbed harder) something that Hiyori couldn't hear because she was pounding across the room, lips curled back in a snarl and snatched the sheers from Lisa's fingers.

"I'll do it," she bit the words off one by one and Lisa didn't even blink, only backed away , hands held open and high to allow the blonde fireball in her torn red yukata free access.

The widening of Shinji's eyes had as much to do with fear as surprise. "Oi, I didn't ask you—,"

"Shut up and sit straight or I'll really make you a baldy," she snapped, her voice harsh and choked at the end. Shinji whipped forward and missed Hiyori scrubbing her eyes across her yukata sleeve one last time, missed the stain of water spreading across the cheap silk.

If it had to be done it was going to be done right, she thought even as Shinji's head twitched back, "A little past the shoulders, Sarugaki-san."

"I said look forward, retard!" said Hiyori, clubbing him upside the head with the hilt of the scissors. Shinji's head whipped forward and in one smooth movement Hiyori grabbed a clump of strand at the base of his neck and sliced.

The soft sound of the clump hitting the floor filled the warehouse.

"Oops, looks like I accidentally cut it too short, baldy, guess I'll have to make it all even now," she cackled and set to work, occasionally clubbing Shinji back into submission as he struggled.

The final result was…not pretty. Jagged bits stuck out ever which way as if someone had taken a handful of straw and glued onto Hirako's skull. Lisa found a mirror and with a smirk Hiyori brought it up for Shinji to see the results.

For a moment he could only gape at the choppy mess. One hand came up to touch a strand that stuck straight up at the top, before it fell bonelessly to his side. His head fell forward in what Hiyori thought was despair until the rest of his body followed and he fell into a dead faint on the floor.

"Hey, hey! Wake up you stupid baldy! Stop being such a girl about it," she shouted, grabbing his shoulders in both hands and shaking his prone body until his teeth rattled and he jolted upright. His gaze was wild and unfocused, until he saw Hiyori. With the jerky motions of a broken marionette, he reached forward and grabbed the tops of her shoulders so they were staring each other in the face. Awareness returned to his eyes.

"You idiot, look what you did!" he shrieked. "What the hell is this? You call this a hair cut?" He started shaking her back and in a moment they were both on the floor screaming and tearing at each other while the other former-Shinigami looked on in exasperation.

"No one will recognize you like this!" said Hiyori. With a frustrated groan, Shinji pinned her to the floor with a hand and looked up to Lisa, while the blonde struggled and clawed at his arm.

"Lisa, can you save it?" he pleaded.

Lisa nodded and gave him a thumbs up. "Sure."

With a sigh of relief Shinji let Hiyori go, though she remained attached to his arm and was gnawing on it when Shinji took his seat on the crate. Lisa measured out the scraggly lengths of his hair and set to work evening them out around the edges. Eventually Hiyori gave up and plopped down on the floor, scowling up at Shinji. It took several minutes, but by the end Shinji's hair was even along the ends and still retained the straight bangs, albeit a bit shorter. After investigating it in the mirror Shinji nodded to himself and stood, brushing off some of the loose hairs that clung to his suit. "I guess I can always wear a hat," he said. "Thank you, Lisa."

"Hey, what about me?" said Hiyori. "I helped too."

"You made it worse, idiot," he said. Hiyori opened her mouth then slammed it shut and folded her arms.

"Whatever," said Hiyori, looking away. With a sigh Shinji began to walk back towards the others when he felt Hiyori grab his sleeve. "Hey." He stopped and looked back at her over one shoulder. "When we leave here, we'll go together, right?"

For a moment Shinji looked like he was going to make an angry retort, but seeing the look on her face he stopped himself. "Sure thing," he said.

Hiyori was glad when he turned away again because if he had seen the irrepressible little smile that lit her face up she would have had to punch his lights out. And as he walked she examined the way his now short hair hung about his face, so different from before and yet the same, and decided she liked it.

Not that she would ever tell him that.

* * *

Please review, I'd love to know what you think!


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